Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument Access Act

Madam President, I rise today to pass important legislation in the State of Wyoming. This bill has only to do with Wyoming and no other State. It is H.R. 3415, the Pilot Butte Power Plant Conveyance Act.

It allows the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to transfer the ownership of the facility to stakeholders in my home State of Wyoming. The Pilot Butte power plant is owned by the Federal Government, but it has not been in service since 2008. It closed when it became too costly to operate. So it has been sitting idle there in Wyoming in a small area of 2\1/2\ acres for the past 15 years. It is owned by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, and they are planning to demolish it.

To be clear, we are talking about a mothballed hydroelectric structure. We are talking about 2 acres of Bureau of Reclamation land. This is essentially 1\1/2\ football fields in size. That is how small of a footprint this is.

Well, the Midvale Irrigation District in Pavillion, WY, reached out to the Wyoming congressional delegation--all three members of the delegation--saying that they were willing to take ownership of this power plant that has been sitting idle for 15 years and ready to be demolished. Midvale Irrigation proposed this transfer as a solution to provide energy to local users. The local people right there came to us. They said that they will make the needed repairs to bring this power station back into operation.

If enacted, the bill will enable the facility to be revived after years and years of neglect and sitting idle. Communities in my home State of Wyoming will once again be able to get electricity from this local source of hydropower. This transfer is the only option to save the facility for future use. Without this bill, the Bureau of Reclamation plans to demolish the facility. As a result, it is going to cost the American taxpayers over $7 million to destroy this property.

This bill that I have introduced, sponsored by the entire Wyoming delegation, is a win-win. The American people will no longer own a mothballed facility that is going to cost $7 million to demolish, and the people of Wyoming will be able to put the hydropower plant back into use.

Now, there has been a lot of conversation about the consultations and discussions that I have had with community members and stakeholders. I have met directly with both the Eastern Shoshone and the Northern Arapahoe Tribes regarding this specific bill and the hydropower plant. Since February--February of this year--my office has been actively engaged in discussions with all parties involved. This summer, my staff visited the facility and met with all of the stakeholders.

Everyone wants to see the facility operating again, and I am confident that the people of Wyoming will properly manage this facility in a way that benefits everyone in the local community.

The House of Representatives passed this legislation unanimously back in February. It has the support of the entire Wyoming delegation.

So, Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 3415, which was received from the House; further, that the bill be considered read a third time and passed; and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Madam President, this 2\1/2\ acre piece of land is owned by the Bureau of Reclamation--not owned by the Tribe, not owned by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. This is owned by the Bureau of Reclamation. It is a title transfer to create an energy source for local stakeholders. This is all about my home State of Wyoming. We are talking 2\1/2\ acres.

I understand the Senator from Minnesota is making this objection on her behalf as well as the behalf of the Senator from New Mexico. Let me assure the Senators from Minnesota and New Mexico that I will be vigilant and watching out for bills that impact at least 2\1/2\ acres in their home States. For example, the Senator from New Mexico, right now, has a bill, Cerro de la Olla, and it was reported favorably out of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Madam President, that bill established 12,000 acres--not 2\1/2\ acres--12,000 acres of wilderness in New Mexico. This bill in my home State--not New Mexico, not Minnesota--Bureau of Reclamation land is 2\1/2\ acres.

As I said, I will be vigilant and watching out for bills that impact at least 2\1/2\ acres in their home States. And I consider their bills now dead until the Pilot Butte issue is resolved.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, could I clarify for the Chair, Calendar No. 304 was misread as 301. It is 304, which is S. 961.

Madam President, I rise today to thank Senator Barrasso and my colleagues on Energy and Natural Resources.

Today, we were able to pass H.R. 5443, which is the Accelerating Appraisals and Conservation Efforts Act. I am so appreciative of my colleagues for that support today. This is going to make a real difference for working families in this country.

We know that every parcel of land the Federal Government transfers or sells has to be appraised. Right now, we have a backlog of transfers waiting on approval because of a shortage of appraisals. That is delaying affordable housing construction, conservation efforts, and critical infrastructure projects that we really need in Nevada.

I thank my colleagues in joining me in cutting through this government redtape.

This act was authored by me here in the Senate but also my colleague Congresswoman Susie Lee in the House. It will speed up land transfers at no additional cost to the American taxpayer by giving private appraisers the same flexibility as the government to be part of this process. In my home State of Nevada, where over 80 percent of the land is owned by the Federal Government, that is a big deal.

This is a commonsense bipartisan solution. I am so grateful we were able to pass it today.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, reserving the right to object, I want to say that I understand that Senator Heinrich from New Mexico has concerns about the Pilot Butte Power Plant Conveyance Act, and I share his concerns.

The Eastern Shoshone and the Northern Arapahoe Tribes are rightfully concerned about the lack of official Federal Government to Tribal consultation on this proposal which would directly impact their reservation. I know that one of our most fundamental responsibilities as a body is to honor our trust and treaty obligations to Tribal nations and to uphold that government-to-government relationship.

I want to say that I appreciate Senator Barrasso's work with my colleagues on these land bills, and I am not objecting to any others of them. However, I urge that we have the Tribal consultation that should be appropriately conducted on this bill; therefore, I object to the passage of H.R. 3415.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of the following bills en bloc: Calendar No. 595, S. 3123; Calendar No. 644, S. 5125; Calendar No. 306, S. 2018; Calendar No. 649, H.R. 5443; Calendar No. 304, S. 961; and Calendar No. 613, S. 4209.

I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendments, where applicable, be considered and agreed to; that the bills be considered read a third time and passed; and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, all en bloc.